Catwalk review: Ones To Watch

Surely you could feel the buzz that came from the Vauxhall Fashion Scout venue this evening as the first day of London Fashion Week came to a close with the eagerly anticipated Ones To Watch show – the clue was in the title.

Martyn Roberts, co-founder of Vauxhall Fashion Scout commented before the show, "the Ones To Watch show is a great opportunity for exciting young creative businesses to take their first big steps in front of an international audience" and what an audience it was, including editors from British and Japanese Vogue and fashion week veteran Hilary Alexander.

As our fluency of ethical fashion progresses, along comes Edinburgh College of Art graduate, Lu Flux to help readdress the issue. Hailing from the Isle of Wight, Lu opened the show with a young collection of both mens and womenswear looks using British fabrics. The collection had a distinctly English feel as herringbone plaid was artfully clashed and used to line pockets. Key colours were ivy and faun and the knitted leggings for men are sure to keep the boys warm come next season.

Next up was Central Saint Martins graduate, Kumiko Watari with her migh-T by Kumiko Watari collection. Based on the idea of “the excitement and fear of pushing towards the unknown,” what we do know is that we all need a pair of trompe l'oeil leggings in our wardrobes. Reminiscent of Royal Copenhagen china, Watari showed a wearable collection of desirable jersey pieces with animal and hot air balloon motifs.

Breaking up the more store friendly collections was Studio_805. The brainchild of Leeds born Andrew Bannister, the nine looks presented were essentially sportswear in graphic red and white chequered prints. Walked down the catwalk to an anarchic rock music theme, one the most appealing looks was Bannister’s own; a pair of pleated trousers in a McDonalds print.

Closing the show was Royal College of Art graduate, Alice Palmer who presented a collection of feminine knits in gauges of all scales in an austere colour palette of white, black and taupe. Shoulders and hips were formed into acute points and body conscious fine knits skimmed the hips and thighs. The styling had a medieval leaning, with models wearing knitted bonnets akin to chain mail and the attention to detail on the trousers were worthy of note.

The Ones to Watch show next season will definitely be one to be seen. Dal Chodha

Images: Eddie Blagbrough


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To view video of the show courtesy of Toni&Guy TV click here.